Many conventional mutes for saxophones are known in the art. They generally comprise a structure adapted for fitting to the bell of a wind instrument.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,569,864 to Hamanaga et al. discloses a mute for a wind instrument, the mute being formed of paper, wood, metal or synthetic resin and shaped in such a manner that it fits the bell portion of a saxophone. The mute has an inner surface shaped in such a manner that standing waves of representative harmonic tones have respective final nodes therein close to final nodes of the standing waves generated without the mute, and the pitch of the sound is hardly changed between a performance with the mute and a performance without the mute.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,309,808 to Tarrant discloses an acoustic practice mute for brass musical wind instruments having a bell end, which acoustically transmits muted sound to the ears of the player without distortion. The volume of sound reaching the ears of the player can also be regulated.
Other variations embodying the concept of muting the sound emanating from a wind instrument by adapting the mute to fit the bell portion of the wind instrument are known in the art. However, it must be noted that none of the mutes for wind instruments embodying the above mentioned principle can efficiently mute the sound emanating from a saxophone because the design of the saxophone differs from other wind instruments such that the saxophone not only allows sound to pass through its bell but also through its keys. Therefore a mute attached to the bell of a saxophone can only reduce the sound from the lower notes while the higher notes would remain relatively unmuted.
Hence, it can be seen that there exists a need for a muffler (mute),designed especially for saxophones, which can reduce the sound emanating from its keys as well as its bell. The saxophone muffler will have to be designed so that it is easily portable and it will allow a saxophonist unhindered use of all the saxophone keys. In addition, it will be advantageous to have a saxophone muffler that can also act as a carrying case for the saxophone, so that the saxophonist can avoid needing to carry a separate mute while traveling. This carrying case will be designed to protect the saxophone from impacts and also to act as a mute for the saxophone.